Strawberry Tea
by Broken Wings And Broken Smile
Summary: When Ayumi moves to China Town she stumbles across Count D's shop and starts working for him. But something's off about this place, and the man who runs it. Can she really get to know this Count D she's beginning to Li- Rating will go up in later chapters
1. Count D's Shop

**Strawberry Tea**

**I wrote this story** **for a person on Gaia Online, this is going to be rather long. Hope you enjoy. Do not own PSOH, or any store or pop culture reference.**

In a small café in Chinatown, a girl picked at her ice cream. She looked around the purple silk-draped walls, and stared at the gold Chinese symbols, trying to remember what they all meant.

She didn't get it. It was her favorite, chocolate with a strawberry swirl, but she just couldn't enjoy it. She twirled her long brown hair with her fingers, and fidgeted in her chair.

She couldn't figure out what it was, but she felt… anticipatory about something. She looked up and called the waitress over, noticing some Jock-types rioting up in the corner. They were laughing uproariously at nothing, and she turned away quickly to avoid their glance.

From where she was, she could tell they were at least Seniors, if not in college. It was a small café, and you could see everyone with no problems. They looked like the type you'd see head-butting and hitting on the poor freshman in the café who didn't know better.

She paid her bill and left, but one of the Jocks was staring at her with an odd gleam in his eye. She assumed that he was drunk as a lord and paid it no attention.

After about a block, she felt someone behind her. The feeling didn't go away another block later and she ducked into an alley to avoid her pursuers.

It was then she realized that that was about the stupidest thing you could have done. Yep, going into a _dark alley_ to get away. If she could have hit her head on the wall, she would have.

Unfortunately, she never got the chance, because that's when someone wrapped their arms around her from behind. A rough hand covered her mouth, and the matching hand covered her eyes.

A voice in front of her spoke up, "Hey, little girl." Her eyes widened and she tried to scream. The hand over her mouth clamped tighter as did the arms around her chest. "Aww, don't be scared. We just wanna have a little fun with you is all."

Crap, she knew she was in trouble. Her mind sharpened, and she built up all of her adrenaline rush before ripping her jaws open to bite the hand that covered them, and squeezed her body together tightly to slip out of the arm's grasp.

Ducking and running, she tried to get away from the Jocks chasing her. 'I can't outrun them.' She realized. Seeing a large, red archway leading down into stairs, she almost tripped down them in her escape.

She bolted until she reached a huge door, opening it to lead into a smoky den, richly furnished in heavy oriental design. 'What's that smell?' she thought. She walked farther in, sniffing the air. 'It's incense!'

The entire place was filled with sweet-smelling smoke coming from an old-fashioned iron censer sitting on a wooden table. "Irrashaimase."

The girl whirled around panting. "We have everything from dogs to cats to birds to insects to reptiles. What can I do for you?"

The girl waited for her heart rate to calm down. "Geez! You almost gave me a heart attack!" The girl took a closer look at the… were they a man?

They were very effeminate. Almost androgynous. But she supposed he must be a man. His hair was cut in a short black bob, falling over his eyes. She noticed one was amber, one was purple. Odd. He seemed to be wearing a long-sleeved Ao Dai with peonies on it. No wonder he looked like a girl.

"Hello. N-nice to meet you." For some reason this man made her a bit nervous. He surveyed her calmly. "What would you like?"

"Hm?" 'Cats, birds, reptiles…' Oh, this must be a pet shop. "Oh. No, I'm sorry. A few men were chasing me, and so I ran in here to get away. Aisumimasen." She bowed.

"There is no need to apologize, young lady. I understand completely. Please, sit down." He gestured to a set of patterned chairs next to a low, wooden tea table. "Would you like some tea?"

"Yes, thank you." She took a seat, and the china cup he offered. "So what is your name, young lady?" She looked up, startled by the question. "My name is Ayumi Alistier Alexander Alexandria Sakura Starlight Gankustuou III. But please, call me Ayumi."

The mysterious shopkeeper raised an eyebrow. "Ayumi Alistier Alexander Alexandria Sakura Starlight Gankustuou III?"

Ayumi's eyes narrowed. "No, I'm serious. Call me Ayumi. I like the name, well, names. But, seriously, not all of them together. My mom and dad couldn't decide on a name, so I guess they used all of them." She was used to asking, but it was still annoying, having a name like a tawdry romance novel or a soap opera.

The shop tender sipped his tea quietly. "I see." Ayumi suddenly realized she didn't know his name. "Excuse me, sir, but what is your name?"

The shopkeeper suddenly smiled. A small, secret smile, like he knew something she didn't. "My name is Count D." Ayumi cocked an eyebrow. "Count D?"

'Ah, Count, so he is definitely a man.' The man kept that secret smile. "Yes, my Grandfather is also Count D. He is the true owner of this shop. I am simply watching it until he returns."

"So your mother and father picked out your name?" Ayumi started and almost dropped her teacup. "Oh, yes. My father picked out 'Ayumi'. He really liked that name. He was Japanese. My mother was European."

"We lived in Europe together for a while before my parents divorced and my mom moved here to Chinatown. I lived with Dad, until he died. I moved here with mom a month or two ago."

She had no idea why she was telling him so much. Was it just that he was so easy to talk to? No, it was probably that she hadn't had someone who listed to her since she got here.

Or maybe even that she hadn't had a chance to discuss this stuff with anyone, not that she had many friends TO discuss it with.

She had transferred in halfway through Senior year, and so with that, plus being very smart, with a straight-A average, well, it was a bit off-putting.

But this man…he was just so easy to talk to. He had this calming aura, and she felt like he was really _listening_ to her. Odd for someone she just met, no?

Maybe it was the tea. It was very good, and made her feel mellowed out, calm, cucumber-cool. She hoped to God this man didn't roofie her drink. This Count D.

She realized she had been sitting staring at the flowered teapot for around two minutes, lost in thought. Oops. Count D smiled. "Thinking about something very hard, ne?"

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry." She apologized. But Count D didn't look offended. If anything, his eyes grew brighter. "Do you like animals, Ayumi-san?"

Her eyes widened. Of course! This _was_ a pet shop. "Oh, yes, I love animals! I wish I could have some! Oh, but we can't have animals in our apartment, you see." She clarified, thinking he wanted to sell her one.

Count D's secret smile returned full force, and bigger. "Do you believe in mystical animals, Ayumi-san?" Her eyes lit up in a display of curiosity. "Mystical animals?"

Count D smiled wider. "Yes. Those animals not commonly found. Mysterious in both appearance and ability. The Phoenix. The Mermaid. The Kirin. The Unicorn. The Vampire. The Werewolf."

He rattled these off like he knew each one intimately. Gee, for not being much of a talker, he was certainly getting chatty. She had only met him ten minutes ago. Meeting a new person, perhaps he had only been reserved. At least, temporarily.

"Yes, I believe in those animals. I believe in all kinds of mystical flora and fauna. I just really wish I could meet some of them. That would be amazing."

Count D's smile grew. "How would you like to work in my shop after school? With my Grandfather gone, we're a bit shorthanded, and I could use a helpful young lady like you."

Wow, she'd been in this shop for such a short time, and already she was being offered an after-school job. 'Should I take it? I've only just met this man. This store could do drug-trafficking for all I know. But we really need the money…' "I'll do it. When do I start?" Count D smiled, a big one this time, closing his eyes. "You may start tomorrow, Ayumi-Chan. 4:00."

Chan? We were getting familiar already? But I worked for him now, so I guess we would be seeing a lot of each other. Chan… It sounded nice.

Ayumi decided as she rode home in a cab that she liked this…Count D.


	2. Home, Sweet Home

**Hi! I'm back with another update. Bet you all thought I died. No, I'm here. You might want to re-read chapter one, you've probably forgotten what this is about. From here on, unless otherwise noted, this is in Ayumi's perspective. And without further ado, here's Strawberry Tea, Chapter 2~**

I looked up at the large gray building before me, thinking how strange the luxurious shop looked in comparison to where I lived, this plain, dingy apartment. I headed up the stairs to the ninth floor, where I lived.

I **hate **elevators. I'm terrified of them. I never use them if I can help it. Besides, exercise is good for you, and I don't exactly have a park to go jogging in.

Arriving at my apartment, I just barged right in, the door lock is broken anyway. I tossed my stuff on the counter, thankful I got home safe. By the time I left Count D's shop, those creeps were gone. Small mercies.

Come to think of it, it was his grandfather's shop, wasn't it? Oh well.

I walked to the bedroom with its peeling gray paint and ancient wooden bed. "Hi, mom!" I called. "Hi, Hon." answered a dry, creaky voice.

A tousled head of gray hair lay on the pillow, the body hooked up to several grey machines through the use of tubes and wires, a breathing apparatus under her nose.

She was dying. And no doctor we went to could tell us why. They said it was a staph infection. But nothing was working and she was dying. She wouldn't go to the hospital, and I couldn't force her.

So we brought Hospice here. And I kept vigil on my mother whenever I could, watching her slowly drift into death.

Mom didn't eat dinner any more. She had IV's and feeding tubes now. But I still needed to eat- the bowl of ice cream was ages ago. I grabbed some shrimp ramen- my favorite- and chowed down.

I didn't eat a whole lot- didn't need to- and ramen was warm and filling. My BMI was 18.2. That's underweight. 5' 4", 106 pounds. With my brown hair, I thought I looked vaguely mousy.

Oh well, some are born with it, some aren't. No use crying. And jealousy is unattractive in any case. Though that Count D certainly was.

**_Wait. What?_**

Count D looked... what? Well, it must be said he had a nice face. Acne-free, fashionably pale, nicely-shaped, not too thin, filled out without being overweight. So? I'm a freaking senior. In High School. I'm 18. I can notice boys. doesn't mean I have to fawn over them either. Besides, he looked like he was too old for her. He was, what, 24? 25? Too old. And I need to focus on school, and mom. No boys.

But D **was **cute.

**Ok, sorry for the short chapter. I wanted to leave it there. I shall be back soon (hopefully, and if we're all lucky) with Strawberry Tea, chapter 3!**

**Peace, love, and stress-huggles,**

**~Broken Wings.**


	3. Confusion

**I'm back with another chapter in, what, 24 hours? Ok, I need you guys to vote. Should you get frequent, short chappies like this, or infrequent, long ones, and risk me forgetting or not being able to update? You vote. Now chapter 3.**

4:00. Time to start work. I had come to this tiny Chinatown shop for the second time in 24 hours. I know it sounds strange, to feel at home in a place such as this, that I'd only been in once before, and such a strange place anyhow.

Thick red curtains hung in the doorways and intricately patterned rugs carpeted the floor. The low wood table was still there, as was the censer, still spitting smoke. Tapestries hung the walls, deer, tigers **(A.N. Hmm, some foreshadowing?)**, interesting animals she had never seen before. Plants, too, in emerald greens and jades, with flowers in scarlet and lapis lazuli hues, saffron and cream, fuchsia and royal purple. Beauty abounded in Count D's shop.

But now here was a man sitting with Count D. "Some thing big, something flashy, something WOW!" I heard him declare excitedly. Then interrupted Count D's friendly, feminine voice, "Ah, but sir, here we do not just sell pets, but love, dreams, and hope."

"Yeah, yeah, that's very nice, but do you have what I'm looking for?" the man rudely questioned. Count D's smile widened. "Of course, sir. Here, how would the last tiger of this kind in the world do for your purposes?"

"Great, great, just fine! The last, you say?" The rude man was grinning from ear to ear. "Oh yes," Count D smiled. "The very last." How did he cope with this rudeness? "Well, fine then! How 'bout you move the thing into my van?"

Count D turned to me. "Ayumi-chan? Would you mind helping me move this dear creature into Tanaka-san's van?" He inquired, pointing to a large, covered box-shape. I hadn't thought he knew I was here.

"Just one thing, Tanaka-san. With this comes 3 terms. A contract you must not breach, under any circumstances. I'm afraid, if you do, we cannot be held responsible for the consequences of such actions."

The rude, greedy man rolled his eyes. "Great. It's a pet shop for God's sake, and you already want me to lay down ink. Ok, what is it? Can we get this moving?" Count D just showed that solid, stable smile. "Of course, sir."

"The first term is to feed it only fresh meat, and twice a day. The second, to not mark it in any way. The third- to never under any circumstances let anyone see it. Never. Do you understand?"

Tanaka-san smirked. I really disliked this guy. "Yeah, got it. Now let's get a move on. I've got places to go and people to see." We loaded the large, white-sheet covered box into Tanaka-san's van, and he sped away.

I turned to Count D. "How could you stand such rudeness? And still remain friendly?" Count D turned and his eyes pierced mine. "It is important to be polite to the customers. It is also those who deserve politeness who will get it. But I think fate and circumstances have a way of giving people what they deserve. I believe those in India call it 'karma'?"

"You are very polite Ayumi, but you get ahead of yourself sometimes, ne? Please work on that." He gave me a gentle smile, so I guessed he wasn't angry. "Now please come back in. We have work to do still, do we not?" And so I followed the strange Count D into his strange shop, and wondered what exactly I had walked into.

**Ok, I need you guys to vote. Still. Should you get frequent, short chappies like this, or infrequent, long ones, and risk me forgetting or not being able to update? The choice is yours. Now, go forth.**

**Peace, love, and mini-spazz huggles,**

**~Broken Wings.**


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